This is a weird day.  I’m still trying to wake up from an odd night of sleep, and my brain keeps catching on random thoughts.  To try to get myself moving, I am watching the Food Network–Emeril is on–and reading blogs about one of my favorite artists, Tift Merritt.

I’m so excited because I get to go see Tift in concert in a couple of weeks.  She’s finally coming back to this area, and I’ll be able to see her play twice.  For those of you who have never heard Tift sing, you’re missing out.  I fell in love with her music when my hubby was still getting the magazine No Depression (the fact that it’s out of business now is a absolutely a crime).  We stopped by Ear X-tacy in Louisville, and I was restless for something new.  Joe scanned the alt-country CDs for a few minutes and pulled out her second album, Tambourine.  “I think she’s someone you’d like,” he said.

As usual, he was right on.  (But don’t tell him that.)  Tift’s melodic voice manages to sound comfortable and passionate at the same time.  She sounds like someone you could be friends with, someone it would be easy to get to know.  Her songs on Tambourine quickly became some of my favorites, and I think I like her latest album, Another Country, even more.  These songs have a personal quality that makes them easy to connect to.  Tift worked on this album during an extended vacation in Paris, and you can hear her rejuvenation in the songs.  They are a relief to listen to when I’m stressed out, especially “I Know What I’m Looking for Now.”

I also have to recommend The Spark, Tift’s radio show, in which she interviews artists about the way they work.  It’s a relatively new enterprise for her, and the offbeat shows are lighthearted and fun.  It’s a new program, so she hasn’t done a ton of interviews yet, but the few that are available are interesting.  They can be downloaded from iTunes, and listened to from her website and on Marfa Public Radio.  My favorite so far is her interview with Nick Hornby.  Check her out and let me know what you think.